Earlier today, Ghana knocked the United States out of World Cup contention by a score of 2-1. When I heard the news, I had mixed feelings. I was bummed we lost, but stoked that Ghana advanced.

I was secretly hoping Ghana would win. The commentators dismissed them early on, before they even played their first match. Their loss to Italy seemed to secure the underdog label.

Then they took on second-ranked Czech Republic and beat them. In fact, they kept them scoreless. That victory endeared Ghana to me. They played with such spirit and didn’t allow the “superior” team to push them around.

They came into today’s match against the fifth-ranked United States as the labeled underdogs, but it felt like they were the favorites. Had this been the first group match of the tournament, both teams starting with a clean slate, I think the U.S. would have beaten them, just as Italy did. But this was the third match. Ghana was coming off a confidence-boosting win against a highly touted opponent, one that had already defeated the United States. The U.S. was coming off a disappointing draw with the Italians. It just felt like the momentum or the Force was with the Ghanaians.

The other good news of the day was Australia’s advancement to the second round. With a nickname like the Socceroos and fans that are willing to don kangaroo suits in the boiling heat or wear inflatable kangaroos on their heads, it’s hard not to root for the Aussies.